Celiac Disease can be attributed to genetic and environmental factors as well as diet. In the 17th International Celiac Disease Symposium (ICDS 2017), which was held in Delhi, Chris J Mulder, Hepatogastroenterologist and Head of Department, VU Medical Center, Amsterdam, Netherlands, said, “Wheat consumption, particularly in northern India, is huge. Compared to 25 g in Western Europe and about 17 g in countries like Italy, India consumes about 30-40 g of wheat daily. This could be a possible reason for the higher incidence of Celiac Disease in India. About 50 g of wheat can induce villous atrophy. Gluten can gradually erode the villi in the small intestine and prohibit the body from absorbing nutrients from food. There is also a lack of awareness about this disease due to which it remains undiagnosed for the major part.” Here are 4 things to know about Celiac Disease.

Can Celiac Disease be treated?

As it is an autoimmune disease, Celiac Disease can only be managed. Successful management of Celiac Disease requires a team approach, including patients, families, physicians, dietitian and patient support groups. After a diagnosis is made, all the patients should be referred to a dietician for nutritional assessment, to be followed up every 3 months. Some other approaches at the individual level include meal planning and assistance with the social and emotional adaptation to the gluten-free lifestyle. At a larger level, industries can be motivated for large-scale production of gluten-free food products ranging from snacks, flour, sweets, ice creams and ready-to-eat packets. Encouragement should also be provided for making home-made food from naturally occurring gluten-free items. Here are 5 expert-recommended tips celiac disease patients should follow.

Although the absolute number of patients with Celiac Disease at present is not very large, this number is expected to increase over next few years/decades. It is thus appropriate that medical community define the extent of the problem and get prepared to handle impending epidemic of Celiac Disease in India. Also read about 3 signs you must get tested for Celiac disease and go gluten free.

Cancer patients today are worried more about the effects of their illness on their partner or family than the physical side effects of chemotherapy, new research has found. The study presented at European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) 2017 Congress in Madrid, Spain, showed that socio-psychological factors have become more significant for patients today than physical side-effects such as nausea and vomiting. “What we found is that, on the one hand, side effects like nausea and vomiting are no longer a major problem for patients — this can be explained by the fact that modern medication against these symptoms is very effective,” study author Beyhan Ataseven from Kliniken Essen Mitte Evang, Huyssens-Stiftung in Essen, Germany.

“On the other hand, hair loss is still a persistent, unsolved issue that particularly affects patients at the start of their treatment,” Ataseven said. “As time passes and patients get used to this, however, their concerns evolve and other side effects become more significant,” Ataseven added. The team led by Ataseven focused exclusively on breast and ovarian cancer patients and added a longitudinal analysis by carrying out three separate interviews before, during and at the end of their chemotherapy. At each interview, 141 patients scheduled for or undergoing chemotherapy were presented with two groups of cards respectively featuring physical and non-physical side effects. Read here What are the types of cancer resistant to chemotherapy?

The patients selected their five most burdensome symptoms in each group and ranked them by importance. Out of these 10 main side effects, they were then asked to select the five most significant ones from both groups and to rank these as well. “Looking at patients’ perceptions over the entire course of their chemotherapy, the most difficult side effects they deal with are sleep disorders – which become increasingly important over time – and anxiety about the effects of their illness on their partner or family, which remains a top issue throughout,” Ataseven explained. “As doctors, these findings might lead us to consider possible improvements to the accompanying therapies we offer our patients: For instance, sleeping tablets were not until now a part of the routine regimen,” Ataseven added. “There is also a clear case for providing stronger psychological support to address patients’ social anxieties and family-related concerns,” she said. Read more about 10 dos and don’ts during chemotherapy

Bollywood actor Tom Alter, best-known for playing Charles on Zabaan Sambhal Ke and gangster Keshav Kalsi in Junoon, has reportedly been suffering from squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), a type of cancer. According to a report published in the Times of India, the 67-year-old actor is currently undergoing treatment at Saifee Hospital at Charni Road. Born to English-Scottish Christian missionary parents in Mussoorie, Tom has endeared himself to the Indian audience with his brilliant portrayal of characters on the silver screen and on the stage, in a career that has spanned more than four decades.

The news about his cancer diagnosis has sent shockwaves across the industry, especially because the cancer episode is a relapse. There is a lot of speculation regarding Tom’s condition and if reports are to go by, the actor is, unfortunately, battling stage four of the cancer.

What is squamous cell carcinoma?

Also known by its other name epidermoid cancer, SCC is a blanket name given to different types of cancer that originate from the squamous cells. Common types of the disease include:

Squamous cell skin cancer that affects the skin

Squamous cell carcinoma that affects the lungs

Squamous cell thyroid carcinoma that affects the thyroid

Oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma that affects the oesophagus

SCC occurs in all the parts of the body, including the genitalia and the mucous membranes. But it is commonly seen in areas that are exposed to the sunlight such as head, ears, neck and back of the hands. According to the Skin Cancer Foundation, it is the second-most common type of skin cancer after basal skin carcinoma. Over the years, the incidence of the cancer has steadily increased, but the case-fatality rate of the cancer is only around one percent.

The incidence of SCC is quite high, but if they are promptly detected, diagnosed and treated the percentage of cure is approximately 95 percent. So it is important to ensure the early detection or prevention for these type of tumours.

Who is it common in?

SCC affects more men than women. The incidence of the cancer is two times more in men.

The incidence of SCC increases with age, especially in people who have crossed the age of 60.

These days, SCC is also seen in people who are as young as 40 years old.

Light-skinned people with skin phototypes I and II according to Fitzpatrick’s Color Atlas and Synopsis of Clinical Dermatology.

People whose skin doesn’t tend to tan and have a tendency to get sunburnt are at greater risk.

If you are an obese man planning to get under the knife to loose that extra paunch, think twice. According to a study, undergoing a type of bariatric surgery may raise the risk of frequent sperm aberrations and lower fertility rates in men. The findings revealed that men who underwent Roux-en-Y gastric bypass(RYGB) surgery reported elevated levels of the estrogen hormone estradiol and deficiency in vitamin D, factors which could negatively impact semen and fertility. This reduction was despite improvements in weight, androgen levels and sexual quality of life following the procedure, the researchers said.

“This study is one important piece in solving the puzzle of male infertility. The challenge is to see if correcting hormonal and micronutrient aberrations are enough to reverse male infertility,” said Edward Lin, Surgical Director, at Emory University’s Gastroesophageal Treatment Centre in Georgia. In a Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, only a small part of the stomach is used to create a new stomach pouch, roughly the size of an egg. The smaller stomach is connected directly to the middle portion of the small intestine (jejunum), bypassing the rest of the stomach and the upper portion of the small intestine (duodenum). Read here 5 things you need to know before undergoing bariatric surgery

For the study, published in Bariatric Surgical Practice and Patient Care, the team compared the long-term effects of weight loss following RYGB among a group of sexually active men attempting to conceive with a partner to the semen parameters and fertility of obese men who did not undergo bariatric surgery and to a control group of lean men. Read here 3 types of bariatric surgery you need to know about

Getting rid of your belly bulge may be necessary for more than just vanity’s sake as, according to a study, abdominal fat may increase the risk of developing cancer especially in postmenopausal women. The findings showed that body fat distribution in the abdomen is more important for reducing the risk of cancers such as lung and gastrointestinal (GI), than body mass index (BMI) or fat percentage. The study put a new spin on weight management priorities for women in this age-group, who are prone to abdominal weight gain, said Line Maersk Staunstrup, doctoral student with Nordic Bioscience, a Denmark-based biotechnology firm.

“When assessing cancer risk, BMI and fat percentage may not be adequate measures as they fail to assess the distribution of fat mass,” Staunstrup explained. “Avoiding central obesity may confer the best protection,” Staunstrup said. For the study, presented at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) 2017 Congress in Madrid, the team included 5,855 women (mean age 71 years) to assess body fat and body fat composition. They were followed for 12 years. The researchers found that the ratio of abdominal fat to peripheral fat was a significant independent predictor of cancer diagnosis. Read here Should you worry if you start bleeding post menopause?

Looking in detail at specific cancers and risk factors, the investigators determined that only lung and gastrointestinal cancers were associated with high abdominal to peripheral fat ratios. Further, older age, receipt of hormone replacement therapy and smoking as well as obesity and particularly insulin resistance were found to play specific roles in raising cancer risk. “Increases in insulin, resulting from over-consumption of simple carbohydrates such as potatoes, wheat, rice and corn, result in fat accumulation that is specifically visceral and abdominal,” explained Andrea De Censi, from Galliera Hospital, Genoa, in Italy. The study opens the door for clinicans to intiate a number of interventions in obese patients. Apart from fat loss with diet and exercise, diabetes drug such as metformin, which can lower insulin effects may play a potential role for cancer prevention, the researchers said.

Young children with respiratory tract infections such as colds and pneumonia may be at an increased risk of developing asthma and weak lung function in later life, says a study. The study of 154,492 European children found that those who had upper respiratory infections, such as colds, sinusitis, laryngitis, tonsillitis, pharyngitis and otitis, by the age of five years had a 1.5-fold increased risk of developing asthma in later life. Children who had suffered from lower respiratory tract infections, such as bronchitis, bronchiolitis, pneumonia and general chest infections, had a two- to four-fold increased risk of developing asthma in later life and were also more likely to have worse lung function, according to the findings presented at the European Respiratory Society International Congress in Milan, Italy.

“These findings support the hypothesis that early-life respiratory tract infections may influence the development of respiratory illnesses in the longer term,” said Evelien van Meel from Erasmus MC University Medical Centre, The Netherlands. “In particular, lower respiratory tract infections in early life seem to have the greatest adverse effect on lung function and the risk of asthma,” van Meel said. The researchers analysed data from 37 groups of children from several European countries who were born between 1989 and 2013. Children were included in this analysis if data were available on respiratory tract infections in early life (from age six months up to five years old), and childhood lung function and/or asthma. Read more about Hormone helpful in preventing pneumonia identified

The length of follow-up varied between groups, but ranged from birth until the age of four to 15 years. Lung function and asthma are two different measures of respiratory health and are only partly related. “Lung function is an objective measure of the function of the lungs and airways. Lung function could be affected without leading to symptoms, or it could lead to asthma or other complaints such as wheezing,” van Meel said. “Additionally, a child could be diagnosed with asthma but their lung function could be fairly unaffected, for example because they are taking adequate asthma medications,” van Meel added. Read here Asthma drugs may prevent a deadly form of pneumonia